Rough Roman Memes

In support of your point, here's a nice little quote from Emperor Claudius, who was also a scholar and a historian:

What was the ruin of Sparta and Athens, but this, that mighty as they were in war, they spurned from them as aliens those whom they had conquered? Our founder Romulus, on the other hand, was so wise that he fought as enemies and then hailed as fellow-citizens several nations on the very same day. Strangers have reigned over us. That freedmen’s sons should be intrusted with public offices is not, as many wrongly think, a sudden innovation, but was a common practice in the old commonwealth. But, it will be said, we have fought with the Senones. I suppose then that the Volsci and Aequi never stood in array against us. Our city was taken by the Gauls. Well, we also gave hostages to the Etruscans, and passed under the yoke of the Samnites. On the whole, if you review all our wars, never has one been finished in a shorter time than that with the Gauls. Thenceforth they have preserved an unbroken and loyal peace. United as they now are with us by manners, education, and intermarriage, let them bring us their gold and their wealth rather than enjoy it in isolation. Everything, Senators, which we now hold to be of the highest antiquity, was once new. Plebeian magistrates came after patrician; Latin magistrates after plebeian; magistrates of other Italian peoples after Latin. This practice too will establish itself, and what we are this day justifying by precedents, will be itself a precedent.

I have a fantastic book on the subject, Imperial Ideology and Provincial Loyalty in the Roman Empire, highly recommend.

At the same time, Rome survived the extreme corruption of the Jugurthine War, the infighting of the Social War, and three servile wars in the Late Republic, and the golden age of Rome hadn't even begun. The Empire survived Caligula, Nero, and Domitian before the reign of the Five Good Emperors even came to pass.

Where we are is anyone's guess.

Just figured I'd lighten the doom a little.

For all the people saying "This is it. We're done. It's all over.": It can get so much worse. Screwed is a matter of degree. One can get more screwed, or one can try to get less screwed.

[falls on own sword]

The tricky thing there is that it's been way, way higher than today in past eras long before anything breaks. IIRC most of the research shows it just goes up indefinitely, most of the time, and then reverses during times of collapse when the poor are finally able to loot the mansions.

I really hope actual democracies play by different rules, though.

If we discriminate against trans people hard enough, all our problems will be solved.

Elites hoarding wealth to the detriment of the polity and mindless obedience to utterly incompetent cretins are truly timeless contributors, though.

… because he will accelerate the decline of Western-centric global domination. Fasten your seatbelt - it’ll be wild.